The 6.30pm church family had a meal together in the church hall after a recent service. Read on to find out what it was like to be one of the organisers, or one of the ‘consumers’, of the meal!
Speaking to a couple of teenagers who attended, this is what they thought:
I really enjoyed the meal after the evening service. I sat and talked to my friends over the meal and enjoyed tasting several of the different puddings that had been brought. We sat next to the pudding table so had a good opportunity to look at them all before choosing! And some of us may have tried more than one! It was lovely to see the 6.30pm church family eating, talking and being altogether afterwards.
And also
The meal after the service was great. Loads of lovely food had been cooked – there was certainly enough for seconds but I also had space for some of the cakes that had been brought by members of the congregation. As teenagers, we normally have ‘afterchurch’ each Sunday evening (games and time to discuss the talk from the service) so this was a nice change to have a full meal in addition to talking to friends and seeing others from the evening service. As I tend to sit with and talk to the other teenagers, there were people there that I did not recognise so it was good to see the whole church family together.
Wing Chan writes: I was part of the team who helped with organising the Sunday meal, along with Sharon and Helen. It was the first time in a number of years that the 6.30pm congregation had shared a meal together. Neither Sharon, Helen or I were part of the congregation back then so this was our first 6.30 pm meal. We had lots of questions, and it was daunting at first but as we began to plan for the day things came together. There was practical advice from those who had catered for large groups, offers to help serve and set up, bake cakes, and provide equipment – members of the church family supported and helped in their own way. I thought about Romans 12:4-8 and how this event was a great example of this. On the Sunday evening, the hall was transformed into a dining room filled with our brothers and sisters relaxing, sharing a meal together and getting to know one another. It was a lovely sight to see.
“For just as each of us has one body with many members, and these members do not all have the same function, so in Christ we, though many, form one body, and each member belongs to all the others. We have different gifts, according to the grace given to each of us. If your gift is prophesying, then prophesy in accordance with your faith; if it is serving, then serve; if it is teaching, then teach; if it is to encourage, then give encouragement; if it is giving, then give generously; if it is to lead, do it diligently; if it is to show mercy, do it cheerfully.”
Romans 12:4-8